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10 veterinary pages to 'like' on Facebook

In our profession, great Facebook pages can be harder to find than Cesar Millan fans at a veterinary behavior conference. That's unfortunate, because a good Facebook page can be a source of entertainment, content to share with clients and practical examples of good social media marketing.

For years, I've grown my Facebook page with all the patience and care a Buddhist monk might lavish on a bonsai tree (shameless plug:
http://Facebook.com/DrAndyRoark/. And after much digging around, I've also found some excellent pages in our industry to follow. By examining their strengths, I've learned how to create interesting content and engage an audience.

In no particular order, here's my list of the top 10 people, practices and nonprofits that currently impress me most, along with what makes them excel. Note: There are lots of great pages worth following that just don't fit my criteria here or simply slipped under my radar. If you feel your wonderful Facebook page is omitted, please forgive me.

1 Dr. Ernie Ward (
http://Facebook.com/DrErnieWard/. Dr. Ward is a veterinarian and practice owner, practice management consultant and media personality. His Facebook posts are original, engaging and educational. He links to his own articles and blog posts, uses medical photos from his clinic and speaks to followers with a voice that is uniquely his own. Click "like" on Dr. Ward's page for: Nice mixture of content types (clinical and nonclinical photos, blogs, articles, videos and so on).

2 American Veterinary Medical Association (
http://Facebook.com/AVMAVets/): With more than 23,000 fans, the AVMA has an enormous audience of both veterinary professionals and pet owners. It's a reliable source for veterinary news presented in a pet-owner-friendly format. The AVMA's willingness to listen to the desires of its audience and have some fun is also impressive (on Halloween, they promoted veterinarians as valuable members of any zombie apocalypse survival team). Click "like" on the AVMA's page for: Excellent mix of veterinary news and educational materials.

3 Pawcurious (
http://Facebook.com/Pawcurious/): Dr. Jessica Vogelsang is a veterinarian, popular pet blogger and lifestyle expert. While her page is rarely clinical, Dr. V does an outstanding job of engaging her pet owner audience in a meaningful way. She, like Dr. Ward, creates a social media persona that is unique, approachable and interesting. Click "like" for: Brilliant examples of how to create original content, plus a wonderful voice for conversing with pet owners.

4 Leo's Pet Care (
http://Facebook.com/leospetcare/): Dr. Greg Magnusson is a veterinarian and practice owner in Indianapolis, Ind. He has obviously embraced social media marketing as a tool for growing his single-doctor practice, and his practice blog provides him with great digital content to build on. Regardless of whether you share Dr. Magnusson's opinions, you have to admire how he continues to create engaging content on topics of interest to pet owners. Click "like" for: Unique content designed to build client relationships, from the perspective of a solo practice owner.

5 CATalyst Council (
http://Facebook.com/CatalystCouncil/): If you're hoping to bring more feline patients into your clinic, then the CATalyst Council can help. Click "like" for: Reliable educational materials, along with some pro-cat humor.